The wireless (network) that had served us for the last two years stopped working last week because of a fancy technical incompatibility involving routers cable and/or Adsl. A replacement was purchased from ebay at a very decent rate.
My overjoyed (programmer) spouse rushed off this morning to the post office to collect the parcel. It looked intact and in good health contrary to all fears about second hand purchasing on the internet. So despite a grand breakfast of
adai and
chai, he non-unanimously decided to set up the wireless without delay. In the backdrop of the mild cold and drizzle outside and
Kanda Sashti Kavacham (i remembered my neighbour vaadyaar mami who used to play it at the crack of dawn and sing along with it) playing inside, I abandoned the kitchen premises and watched while he sincerely sat down, bent over, half rose, scratched his chin and frowned during the process.
What shall we name the wireless network, he asked. I promptly suggested Marthandan. After
Marthanda Varma, a ruler of Kerala some centuries ago. Marthandan also means Sun and I have been enamoured of that name ever since. Besides, my history text books had drawings of him with a beard and crown seated grandly on a bench with curved legs and his hand resting on a sword and Without protesting, Ashok started to type it in ...'MARTHA N DAN' . I squealed with laughter and declared that clearly, he could not appreciate the beauty of the name. Lengthy discussion followed.
Do you want the name of a divinity? Narayana, Murugan, Dandapani,? Nah! Or a colourless repetition with our house name or number? Such as
Alma Home Net? We could do
Number 12 Home Net, couldn't we! Shall we join our names? No? Nick names then? Not the name of a car, please! No
ragam either then. Okay. Silence.
Shall we call it vengaayam? (casually)
What? Vengayam, as in onion, ulli, pyaaz? (shock and excitement)
Yes?
Yes!
